Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to tea machines, and relates more particularly to tea machines utilizing an infusion bag dispensing system that can be used to make tea at home, within a store environment or within a work or office setting.
Description of Related Art
Infusion bags used for preparing tea, herbal beverages or the like are known in the prior art. More specifically, by way of example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,235,273 to Ruston discloses an infusion bag having a means for selectively inserting any desired dry beverage material.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,605,123 to Goodrum et. al. discloses an infusion bag for particulated food products such as tea, coffee and the like, constructed of a tube of perforated thermoplastic film or other porous material.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,746,699 to Lohrey et al. discloses an infusion bag especially for tea, which has a top part with folded down corners and a middle part folded over it, to which a string with two free ends is attached.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,551,336 to Chen discloses an improved infusion bag for preparing an infusion of tea or other infusible substance, which makes the infusible substance less compacted and overcomes the constraint. This gives a higher quantity and higher concentration of infusion liquor.
To package one's own infusion bags for tea, for herbal tea beverages, or the like for which separation of the infusible substance from liquid is desired often times results in a tedious and cumbersome process. Tradition is such that a person needs to get a sachet, hold it open, and transfer the desired infusible material into the sachet. Therefore, it is desirable to have a device, for example, an infusion bag dispenser, which can help to facilitate such packaging and remove the need for a preparation process that requires many ancillary items stored and employed by the end-user.
However, there is no infusion bag dispenser available for people to help or facilitate for them the packaging of their own infusion bags at home, within a store, or within a work setting—to prepare their own tea or herbal beverage or the like.
Therefore, there is a need for tea machines that utilize an infusion bag dispensing system for tea, herb leaves, and the like. Such a tea machine can store the empty infusion bags in a container, retrieve the bag, hold the bag and open the bag for a user to dispense the infusible substance from one or multiple canisters for use.